


Origin: Part 1- The Birth of the Almanac

by ChibiDashie



Series: The Magic Almanac [1]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Animal Attack, Family Drama, Gen, Major Original Character(s), Origin Story, Original Character Death(s), Sad Ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-03
Updated: 2017-03-13
Packaged: 2020-06-29 15:13:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 6,521
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19832848
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChibiDashie/pseuds/ChibiDashie
Summary: A Novelization of Part 1 of my fan comic, The Magic Almanac. https://hetalia-themagicalmanac.tumblr.com/post/154296687598/hetalia-the-magic-almanac-the-origin-part-1-theNovelization originally published on Wattpad, but this version has revisions.Once upon a time many hundreds of years ago, lived a wizard and his rather stubborn son. For many generations, their family were mainly wizards, but the son of the wizard wants to break the tradition, despite disapproval from his father. One day, the wizard comes up with a grand scheme that only required two things: a book found from a bookstore and some magic with the help of his trusty spell book. What ended up from the spell the wizard cast upon the book was only the beginning, waiting to be discovered many, many years later.





	1. The Birth of the Almanac

Many hundreds of years ago in a far off land, lives a well-aged wizard and his son, Horatio. The Wizard was just like any other wizard you'd see; old, wrinkly, and had a head of grey, silky hair and a long beard that reached to his lower chest. This wizard was rather well-known throughout the land he lived in, with many wishing to be apprenticed from him. However, he never has the time to do that, since he cares for his young and undoubtedly stubborn son, Horatio. 

Many in the village they lived in would describe Horatio as a young man who is rather ungrateful for his father, while others would describe him as nothing but a troublemaker. This was rather evident, as he is failing his education to the point he almost dropped out. But why is Horatio like this?

For many generations, this family has a long lineage of wizards; their earliest known ancestor is Arne the Wise, or Arne I, with his beautiful wife, Lady Daalia. Their lineage grew with the birth of their son, Arne II and his eventual wife, Lady Concordia. This romance went on for many, many generations until the birth of Horatio. Their uncles and aunts have sprouted their new generation of wizards elsewhere from different branches of this tree, but one thing remains the same: All of the descendants of Arne the Wise are wizards. 

However, Horatio refuses to be a wizard and has dreams of being a travelling bard. This greatly disappoints the Wizard, for being a wizard in Arne's name is a great honor throughout the land. 

One day, as the Wizard sulked by the hearth while rocking upon a rocking chair, an idea has suddenly struck him, as if the gods have sent a bolt of lightning upon him. Quickly, he got up and ran out of his humble abode and ran to the only bookshop in town. 

The bookshop was a rather modest one, with many books stocked all over and some lying on tables that were provided for those to seek the wisdom that was offered to the average peasant. He looked throughout the many shelves that stood until he noticed a couple of books lying on one of the tables. 

There were three books present. One was titled _Tales of the Underground,_ which was a rather unique bedtime story told to children through the land. Another book was open, but the Wizard couldn't see what it was, nor did he really care about to see what it was. Then the last book was one that truly stood out: _World Almanac_. In truth, it would technically be called an Atlas, but it seemed this book was a guide on Planet Earth. Without hesitation, the wizard paid for the book and quickly ran back home before nightfall. Before he did anything, he made sure there was no sign of Horatio, as he is usually with his two friends, disobeying their parent's curfews. Horatio was nowhere to be found, but with a sigh of relief, the Wizard continued his grand scheme. 

Before doing any kind of spells, the Wizard looked through a rather gargantuan spell book that stood on its own stand, appearing as an ornate music stand for bards to hold their sheets of music so they can perform to the crowds. There in the book, the spell was found after many pages of flipping and searching. This spell was a unique life spell, depending on what object you use it on. Different results vary depending on what object you cast the spell on.

The Wizard opened the Almanac and waved his arms around, as if he were conducting the greatest piece of music the world has ever seen. The spell danced within the pages and blanketed each and every individual word. However, the spell grew rather powerful and a symbol representing Earth rose out of the book that eventually became an incredibly blinding light. 

The spell has successfully been cast upon.

As the light died down, the Wizard thought the spell has failed to work upon the Almanac. Disappointed, he rubbed his eyes, only to see another bright light emerge out of the book...with a hand sticking out of it! The light shrouded around this mystical figure as he emerged, and all the wizard can see was a silhouette of a young man. 

From what it seemed, this young man wore aristocratic clothing and had a cowlick on his head. When the second light died down, much more of this man can be seen. His hair was brown, and so was a mole that was present on his face. What these aristocratic clothing garments included was a long blue coat, a jabot that was white as snow, and even glasses! This must have been a unique pair of glasses that nobody in this land had.

The man placed his hand on his heart and nodded slowly to the Wizard as he stood back in shock. _Who in the world is this man?_ The Wizard thought, _Why has he come out of this book?_

The truth was, this was no ordinary man.


	2. The Repayment

"Who...Who are you?" The Wizard asked to the man, still shocked that his spell has worked. 

"My name is Austria." said the man who emerged out of the book, "But my people refer to me as _Österreich._ "

"I-Impossible! You may be a diplomat, but an entire country?!" 

"If I weren't a country, I wouldn't have popped out of the book, dummkopf! In fact, I will proceed to tell you the entire history of my people who live in my land they call home." 

The Wizard immediately had thoughts of regret already, dealing with not only a very aristocratic young man that turned out to be the entire country of Austria, but with his rather unfriendly attitude. 

Another light shone brightly, coming from the Almanac again! This time, a rather loud voice can be heard, echoing through the entire home! 

"It's me!" the voice screeched loudly, with their hand reaching out of the book. The Wizard sighed, and wondered who in the world it could be this time. 

"Oh, great..." Austria sighed exasperatedly, "It's none other than---"

"The awesome Prussia, of course!"

This new character was a rather tall, flamboyant man, much different than Austria could ever be. His hair was a silvery grey and wore a uniform that was a color only known to be as Prussian blue. A little yellow bird flew around him, but it seemed to be a specimen of an unknown species, something Linnaeus himself has never seen in his journey to classify species. The Prussian man approached the Wizard and swung his arm around him.

"So, what do we have here?" Prussia began as he spoke in a rather eccentric German accent, "An old man wearing something a spoony bard would wear? How lame and not awesome!" 

The Wizard, insulted by this remark only stuttered. "I-I'm a Wizard, you know." 

Suddenly, as if someone else heard this voice, Prussia looked towards the Almanac. There indeed was another voice to be heard, this time sounding a lot calmer than Prussia could ever say.

"My apologies, but did I overhear that someone is a wizard here?" 

The Wizard was rather agitated, as if the insanity was never going to end. _Who is going to emerge out of the Almanac this time?_ He thought grumpily, _What discord will this next fellow bring along?_

Somewhere nearby, Austria was sitting by the fireplace on the Wizard's rocking chair as he read a book that the Wizard always gave to Horatio: _Magic for Ignoramuses._ Austria was intrigued by the book, but was rather displeased by the title, since he knows for the fact that he is not even close to being an ignoramus. 

The Wizard and Prussia saw a blonde man with rather bushy eyebrows that looked almost like Velcro strips attached to his forehead. This time, this man appeared to be a rather dignified kind of man, who calmly walked over to the Wizard from the Almanac. This man was none other than the country of England.

"Prussia can be an absolute buffoon," the man began, "But I have sensed from within the Almanac that you are in dire need of help." 

The Wizard, shocked by such a revelation, looked at this man who just emerged out of the almanac. "Finally!" the Wizard exclaimed, "A rationally sane 'country'!" 

"Well!" England exclaimed as he blushed greatly, "It has been some time since someone called me rational! But do tell me, fellow wizard, what seems to be your issue to the point we're involved?" 

The Wizard sighed and looked down to the ground, being reminded of the pain that rang through him, and the memories of Horatio. "My son." he started, "The one child I thought for sure would live a successful life like those before me, but he is on the verge of delinquency by being a fool and failing his education. But even I, as wise as I can be, do not know why he is doing such things.

As the Wizard felt as if he lost all hope within Horatio, England put his hand on the Wizard's shoulder, reassuring that there is hope left.

"We'll help you," England said in a rather calm tone, "As long as we work together, but it won't be easy." 

The wizard tearfully embraced England, as the entire country gave a reassuring hug to the old man. 

"Everything will be alright, fellow wizard." 

Prussia and Austria watched the two in awe that a country has formed a bond with a human, let alone, a wizard. _I've never seen England being so supportive of someone before..._ thought Austria, _Is this...witchcraft?_ Prussia, on the other hand, had a much different approach to the scene. _I totally ship this!_ Prussia thought, _Wizard man and England do make a good pair. After all, they do magic!_

The Wizard couldn't hold back his tears, as they were filled with nothing but happiness. "Thank you for being so kindhearted and understanding," The Wizard cried as he held England's shoulders, "I must repay you right away!" 

England was shocked. "A repayment?" he asked, "Right away?" 

The Wizard nodded. "Yes, my friend, a repayment! In the form of magic! Magic as in the most powerful spell in my magic arsenal!" 

However, once England heard the word "Magic", he was rather hesitant. "Not to sound disgraceful, but why magic? I know magic myself, but this seems like a silly kind of payment, to be frank." 

"My friend, this is a spell that will change the lives of you and your country friends. A spell that takes many years to master, but only a few have succeeded! A spell that appears as if someone kept writing in this book for many, many years. A spell known only as..." 

The wizard began to form a stance around the book, about to perform a rather powerful spell. 

"Vita Allitera."

His eyes began to glow a hue of white, as if his eyes became lights. He levitated in the air, much to England's surprise. Shocked, England merely had no words to say about this spell, but his thoughts were running all over the place. 

_I was right all this time!_ England thought, _This man has gone mad, and he's going to bloody harm himself with all of this powerful magic!_

Prussia noted that while he was doodling with a quill and ink, he noted the excessive brightness in the room. He got up and ran over to see that the Wizard was performing a spell. "Oh mein gott, this is awesome!" Prussia exclaimed as he watched in awe. England desperately reached out to grab the Wizard's garment to stop him from performing this spell, but it was merely too late. 

The almanac furiously turned the pages, making sure the spell went through each and every page. A spell like this came with a rather grim consequence, though...


	3. Briefing

The spell the Wizard had cast upon the Almanac had a major downside: The Wizard's energy was rapidly draining. He fell from his levitational trance and slammed right onto the hard, wooden floor. Prussia and England stood in shock as they witnessed the very man who brought them to life suffer such a fate. Austria, however, was paying no attention when the trance occurred, as he had his nose in a book. His attention was diverted when he heard the loud thump of the Wizard landing on the floor.

"Why in the name of Beethoven did I hear as if someone..." Austria began, walking towards the scene and not knowing what really happened, " **SWEET MOTHER OF MOZART! WHAT HAPPENED?!** "

"Austria my friend..." The Wizard croaked, "Is that you? I lost so much of my energy....I cannot move...I must...rest."

Right away, Prussia scooped the Wizard in his arms. "The awesome Prussia respects the elderly," Prussia announced, "And has volunteered to help this poor wizard!"

"Thank you, Prussia..."

Slowly but surely, Prussia lugged the weakened old man up the stairs, while the other two tagged along right behind him. 

"You're so light, like a tiny baby!" Prussia said, looking down at the wizard in his arms.

"I presume that you're a very strong country!" 

The two laughed together, but England was rather focused on the gravity of the situation. In his mind, there was no time for laughter: there was only time to see if the Wizard was severely injured or not. 

Once upstairs, there were only two bedrooms. One was for Horatio, which still looked a bit childish, despite his age. England peeked his head into Horatio's room and immediately mistook the room for the Wizard's room. 

"How come your bedroom looks like a child's bedroom?" England asked out of curiosity,

"That's my son's bedroom, you goose!" the Wizard chuckled heartily.

"Ha! You're such a goose, England!" Prussia mocked his fellow comrade and laughed along with the Wizard. 

"No need to be rude. Especially in front of the old man!"

"Now is not the time to bicker!" The Wizard roared, thankfully preventing a fight to break out. 

Eventually, The Wizard's bedroom was found; it was only a couple of feet away from Horatio's. England looked rather intrigued by the rather rustic-feeling atmosphere that was present. He looked around, noting the Wizard's bed had two wooden eagles that were carved on the end.

"So, this must be your bedroom?" Prussia asked as he carried the old man to bed,

"Indeed, it is." 

"Off to bed!" Prussia proceeded to then recklessly drop the almost lifeless wizard onto the bed. Thankfully, he wasn't hurt from the fall. 

"I appreciate your help getting me here, Prussia," The wizard said once again, "Just be more gentle next time. Now, before I doze off, I must tell you three something incredibly important." 

The three countries motioned closer to the Wizard and agreed to listen to what he was going to be briefing to them. 

"If my son gets stubborn, do not fear. It's just him being himself. I truly wish I can read my son's mind, so I can understand what he is thinking of me and find the reason why he is stubborn in the first place. Alas, mind reading is impossible in the art of wizardry. He isn't home now, as I assume he is disobeying the town's curfew with his group of friends. So, I will introduce you three to my son tomorrow when he gets home from school. So please, return in the almanac and rest for the night. Our journey begins tomorrow." 

As the three countries bid farewell for the night, the Wizard blew the candle out that lit up the bedroom. Now, it was finally time for the old man to regain his energy for the very next day. 


	4. Horatio

It was a rather lovely day for the whole village. Traders with horses pulling wagons brought their goods throughout the village, people mingled with each other, and the occasional stray dog chased a stray cat all around. 

Horatio was walking home from school with one of his friends, Cornelius. He was rather big in his gut, which was not something you'd see in the village often. This indicated that Cornelius belonged in a wealthy family and was the heir to their trading company on the day his father dies. 

"Well, Cornelius," Horatio began, "Today was a pretty good day, don't you think?" 

"Indeed," Cornelius answered, "Just thinking of it, your father won't be pleased like always, eh?" 

What were Cornelius and Horatio doing beforehand? Well, they were doing what most teenagers at the time would do: pull pranks onto the other townspeople. This act of tomfoolery involved a shepherd herding his sheep into town. Horatio and Cornelius were hiding in a nearby alley, wearing costumes stolen from a nearby theater that resembled hideous beasts. Once the shepherd was nearby, Cornelius and Horatio leaped out of the alleyway, scaring all of the sheep away. You can tell right away that the shepherd was very cross, and threatened to get the village magistrates after them. Right away, Horatio and Cornelius returned the costumes and continued on with their day as if nothing ever happened.

A rather familiar voice was heard in the distance. "Horatio! Cornelius!" 

The duo looked around to see where the voice was coming from. It seemed like it was all their imagination until they really saw who it was: Alfwin. 

Alfwin was a rather peculiar character. Suffering from dwarfism, he had a rather rough childhood because of his stature, such as being abandoned by his parents for his deformity. Poor Alfwin had to deal with lots of abuse from people, as many considered he was actually a halfling that lived in the woods. Now that he befriended Horatio and Cornelius, Alfwin was treated as the little brother of the troupe as well as being able to have a home ever since befriending the two, living in a well-known inn in the village. 

"Alfwin?" 

Alfwin was in a rather hoppy mood today, hopping around the two excitedly as he was waiting to bring them some news. 

"I hear tonight is the best time to do the one and only..." Alfwin began, "Running with death itself!" 

Horatio's eyes widened, as he immediately understood what this really meant. This was an opportunity to do the unthinkable. 

"Running with Diablo the bull?!" Horatio exclaimed, "I'd so do it!" 

"Have you lost your sanity, Horatio?!" Cornelius protested, 

"Shut up, Cornelius! It's not like i'm going to do it immediately tonight, since my father will be pissy about it."

"Good idea!" Alfwin interrupted

"Don't egg him, Alfwin!" Cornelius forcefully nudged Alfwin, noting that what he did was not the best idea in the world. 

"No matter, my father is quite pissy anyways." 

Alfwin poked Cornelius, noting that he is going to whisper something to the rather bulky man. 

"Never did I know Horatio actually wants to do the Death Run with Diablo!" Alfwin whispered to Cornelius, making sure that Horatio couldn't hear them whispering. 

"Now I realize how long I was dilly-dallying for," Horatio announced, "So I must now say farewell. I shall see you two tomorrow as per usual." 

Cornelius and Alfwin waved to Horatio, who was heading homeward. Though Horatio thought today was going to be an average day for him, there actually was a surprise waiting for him. 


	5. Betrayal

Upon arrival, Horatio noticed his father holding a rather mysterious book. He had no idea what this book even was, nor did he know that the book had a spell cast upon it. 

"Horatio, my son!" The wizard called out to his son as he walked in the door. Horatio groaned, wondering what is about to happen. _Oh great,_ Horatio thought, _Father has a surprise for me once again._

"I have gotten you something that will indeed help with your academics," The wizard then gave the book to Horatio. "I hope you like it." 

"An almanac? Really?" Horatio was skeptical on why he needed an almanac, despite him taking classes for wizardry and other useful things in his future. "I don't see anything special about this." Horatio flipped through the book, but it seemed he really didn't have much interest in it. 

As if someone had heard him, Horatio felt the book shake in his arms and dropped the book out of fear. The book landed safely with no damage whatsoever, but it somehow remained opened. 

"Miraculous save, gravity!" A voice called out in the almanac, 

Horatio began to panic as his father stood back and giggled helplessly.

"Who said that?!" 

"The awesome Prussia, of course!"

Horatio fell on the floor and sat against the door in shock. His thoughts raced across his mind speedily. _Who is this man? Why is he in my home?_

Prussia knelt down to Horatio, trying to be as gentle as possible. "Why so scared, young man?" Prussia asked, "Did I hurt your feelings? Or was it my awesomeness?" At the same time, Prussia was skeptical if Horatio really acted as the Wizard mentioned from yesterday. Perhaps he was just another lost soul in a world filled with people? 

"I don't know who you are!" Horatio cried in fear, "You must be just a crazed diplomat and not an entire country!" 

"Let me introduce myself! I am the awesome country of Prussia! Your father has told us about you, so we are here to help you out!" 

Horatio growled under his breath. No wonder! It was his father behind all of this after all! 

Prussia continued on with his introduction. "Together with many other countries of Earth, we shall explore far and wide and see so much, while you can learn so much! And from what I hear, travelling far and wide is very good for your brain indeed! So how about it, kiddo?" 

Horatio thought about the offer for a bit, but only did he realize that if he actually agreed to Prussia, his father can simply stop nagging him about being a wizard like him. Horatio was hesitant to accept this deal, but he slowly reached his hand to Prussia's hand, as a way to say he will agree to the agreement and to get back on his feet. 

"Welcome to the start of your journey, Horatio! You must be so excited!" 

Horatio's thoughts continued to run around his mind frantically. _Oh lord, how does Prussia know my name? Did father tell them my name?_

"Just remember that as long as the almanac is open, we can visit you whenever we please." 

"Yes, Prussia, sir." 

Since Prussia mentioned that the countries can access Horatio when the almanac is opened, the young lad knew that he can be simply left alone by closing the almanac! Mr. Prussia, you have made a rather crucial mistake that would affect you and your brethren within that book. 

_Oh goodness,_ Horatio thought again, _I can just leave the book closed and just forget about it. Who needs a bunch of ignoramuses teaching me about life anyways?_

His thoughts have been interrupted when Prussia loudly bellowed. "Now make your father proud, Horatio!!!" 

For the first couple of hours of possessing the Magic Almanac, Horatio was already fed up with the countries. One of his most infuriating moments happened with not surprisingly, Austria. As Horatio took the Magic Almanac to his room and put it on a stable surface, Austria came out of the magical book to see Horatio. Already from his serious, aristocratic personality, Horatio already hated Austria from the very moment he heard him. To make it worse, Austria argued that Horatio should be more grown-up at this point and to stop acting so childish. This truly left an impact on Horatio, prompting him to close the Magic Almanac. 

The impact of closing the Magic Almanac was very, very great. Inside of this magic book is a beautiful mansion the countries reside in known only as Friendship Manor. You could very easily get yourself lost in this mansion, but the entrance is always there for you, open as long as the book is opened. However, the Almanac is closed, and so were these two great doors in the entrance of the Magic Almanac. The three countries that met the Wizard reacted in shock that the entrance to Friendship Manor has been closed. Especially Prussia, as he considered this a betrayal that hurt him greatly. Another country, France, was very disappointed to see the two doors closed.

"Non!" France exclaimed, "I was looking forward to meeting Horatio!" France was planning something special for Horatio, where he would be cooking for the young man himself. 

"Now Horatio is on my list of unawesome people because of this!" Prussia announced as he showed everyone a list of "unawesome" people. 

"On a serious note, I never liked Horatio from the moment I saw him," Austria ranted. 

England knew that he couldn't criticize Horatio for being himself, as this could have been what most boys his age would be like. "If we keep complaining on how much of a brat Horatio is, we won't get very far into helping him!" England's outburst caught the attention of the other countries and knew that he was right. "The only thing we can do for now is to wait..." 

And so, the countries waited for the gates of the Almanac to open up, but that wasn't going to happen anytime soon. The Almanac gathered dust, the pages turned yellow from the sunlight, and the wizard knew something felt rather off with his plans. Everyday, he noticed that Horatio never used the Almanac and wondered where it was. The Wizard ran up to Horatio's room and in shock, saw the Almanac sitting there with dust and yellowed pages. Under his breath, he growled the name of his son in rage. 

Some time later, Horatio returned home to see an ominous note left for him. It was obvious it was in his father's handwriting, and Horatio just pushed the thought aside and did what the note read. The note read: 

_Dear_ _Horatio,_

 _Please see me_ _in your bedroom_ _as soon as possible._

_-Father_

Horatio, upon arriving in his room noticed that his father was enraged over something he thought was rather stupidly simple. It seemed that this rage wasn't going to end anytime soon...


	6. Breaking Point

The countries gathered over to the closed gates of the Entrance, listening to the painfully emotional fight between Horatio and his father. Many were concerned for Horatio's emotional well-being, while others, especially Prussia, really didn't care much. Once someone betrays Prussia is forever a traitor in his eyes, munching on popcorn while listening to the two argue. To him, it seemed like a really good radio opera that at least wasn't cheesy. 

"Justice makes this popcorn taste so much better!" Prussia boasted, "And justice is awesome...like me!" 

England knew that this was a very serious matter to the point he was about to knock over Prussia's popcorn. 

"Now is not the time to fool about and eat popcorn, you git!" England shouted, 

"He's right, you know." Another fellow country, China, agreed. 

Prussia brushed off England's protest and continued to munch on his popcorn, while occasionally sharing it with his trusty feathered friend, Gilbird. "Let's just continue watching the storm unfold..." 

On the other side, Horatio and the Wizard continued arguing with each other.

"Father!" Horatio exclaimed, "There is a truth behind this, but you'll disregard it anyways!" 

"If it's you not wanting to follow the family lineage of wizardry, I know!" the Wizard burst out, but realized his outburst came with a rather heavy emotional toll upon himself. Tears began to swell up and drip down his wrinkly, old face and onto the hard wooden floor that they stood upon.

"Horatio... Do you know why our family lineage are purely wizards?" 

Horatio grunted, as this was something his father always told him as a child. It was a rather common bedtime story that many elders would tell their children of Horatio's ancestor who was a well-known hero in the land. 

"A story I told you ever since you were a small child, able to understand words and thoughts. The story of our furthest known ancestor, Arne the Wise."

* * *

Many, many years ago, further back than our story of Horatio and the Magic Almanac, there lived a man named Arne. His braided hair nearly went down to his ankles, which many referred to him as the Braided One. A warrior who fought in a great war against many kingdoms, his efforts have truly turned the tide of the war and has given him the experience to fight against great evils. 

After the Great War ended, Arne no longer had a use for his skills as a warrior. For many years, he trained himself to become something he believed was greater than a warrior: A mage. He crafted his own staff, which came to be known as Stellis, because of the star on the tip of the staff. A beautiful red ruby glistened in the center of the star. 

One day, as Arne practiced magic from a wizard he met from a faraway land, he heard the distressing screams of people outside. He looked out the window to see that a great fire had spread all over the town by an enraged wyvern, only known to be as Vyrik the Terrible. The wyvern knocked buildings down with his barbed tail and since many of the homes use candles, it was rather easy to set a whole town ablaze. 

Arne grasped Stellis and prepared to come face-to-face with Vyrik the Terrible. 

Through the fire and the ashes of the burned buildings and people, Arne finally reached Vyrik the Terrible, who waited for Arne.

"Vyrik the Terrible!" Arne declared, "You have destroyed my home and my people who live in this here village. Prepare to suffer your fate!"

Vyrik roared and lashed its poison-barb tail towards Arne. Swiftly, he dodged the attacks towards him. With one calm breath, Arne leaped into the air and with the strongest magic Arne knew, and slain the evil beast with Stellis. 

* * *

"What?!" Prussia exclaimed as he dropped his popcorn, "This brat is the descendant of a badass warrior?!" 

"I'm not at all surprised, honestly," England said, looking back at the bewildered country, "But what I am impressed is how a warrior taught himself to be a wizard, which is a feat in itself." He looked back at the gates of the Almanac, listening to Horatio and the Wizard. "But one question remains. Will Horatio ever learn to appreciate his father and the rest of his family heritage?"

This question was soon to be answered...

"People break traditions all the time!" Horatio argued, "Why won't you let me break this damned tradition?!" 

"Arne the Wise declared that his offspring that don't become wizards will be cursed! A fool within our family name! Do you want to be nothing but a fool, Horatio?! A fool for eternity?!" 

Horatio has reached his breaking point. Curses! Do they really exist? Horatio didn't care if he was a fool or not, he wanted to reach his one true dream: to become a bard; A bard that can travel through the lands to perform music and poetry to the masses; To become someone much like Shakespeare: beloved for many generations, his plays performed all over the world. 

"Father, I have had enough," Horatio growled, "I refuse to believe in silly curses, and I will live my life however I want my life to be!" 

The Wizard knew at this point that Horatio has become nothing but foolish. It seemed that the Wizard finally needed to budge towards Horatio's demands of fulfilling his own destiny.

"Horatio... just go." the Wizard muttered, "Fulfill your damned dream. I don't care anymore. But no matter, your ancestors will curse you to the deepest pits of Hell."

Horatio was taken aback by his father's statement. He can finally fulfill his dreams now! But at the same time, Horatio did feel terrible for arguing to his own father. 

"Father?" Horatio spoke up worriedly,

"Go." 


	7. Diablo

The night was clear and the moon was at its fullest potential. Through the mountains and the hillside beside the little village, Horatio and his comrades went through the pitch-dark night to reach a ranch known for the bovines that live there. One of those bovines, however, was rather notorious for his aggressive behavior and his terrifying strength to kill. This bull was known only as Diablo. Because of Diablo, many people challenged themselves to run away from the bull. However, many have died from such actions and people urge others not to do this foolish and cruel action. 

"Horatio, there is a high chance you are going to die," Cornelius protested, "You know that, right?" 

"Relax, Cornelius!" Horatio shushed his friend, "I've always wanted to run with Diablo!" 

"Just because you want to run with Diablo doesn't mean that there aren't any consequences that might as well happen! Do you know how many people died doing this, Hora---"

"Shhhhh, Cornelius my friendo. You don't want to disturb Diablo, don't you?" 

Alfwin began to hop and point towards somewhere in the hilly pasture. Cornelius and Horatio looked at the little man to see where he was pointing. 

"Diablo is right over there!" Alfwin said, pointing to a sleeping bull in the distance. 

Diablo napped rather peacefully in the distance. Any sort of disturbance could awaken the beast and unleash its fury upon someone. Horatio was rather surprised to see something mentioned as very aggressive looked so passive, but there is still hints of this monster inside of Diablo.

"Diablo looks scarier than what I hear about him!" Horatio said, 

"If you're so scared of Diablo," Alfwin asked, "Why do you want to do this in the first place?" 

"Oh, Alfwin, that's silly! I am not scared of such a monster! My ancestor killed a wyvern for crying out loud!" 

"Make him proud, Horatio!" 

"Oh, I will, my friend. With such bravery to come close to this monster will impress my ancestor who is watching me from the heavens above, and I will make it out alive!" 

Horatio's bragging can be heard throughout the ranch. The beast has awakened from the sound of the one who challenges it. With a loud snort, the beast rose up from his slumber and roared for all of those to hear. Thundering hooves pounded the ground as he trampled over to the one who was closest to it, which was indeed Horatio. This meant that Horatio had to do nothing but run for his dear life as Alfwin and Cornelius watched helplessly. For a while, Horatio ran as fast as he could away from the enraged beast. However, Diablo was very close to the young man that challenged to run from this beast. Eventually, Horatio no longer had the breath to run any longer and stopped. This was a rather foolish choice for one to take when running from this monster. 

Diablo rammed Horatio with its mighty horns and sent him flying up in the air. He then landed on the ground, breaking mostly a leg and some ribs. Blood dripped out of his mouth from some teeth that fell out from the impact. Diablo wasn't finished with his fury just yet. As Horatio struggled to get back up on his feet, a painful force was felt on Horatio's back. His spine and his lungs were crushed by one hoof from the monster he startled. You can easily hear the cracking of his rib cage and his spine. This very moment was the last moment Horatio took a breath of the crisp air of the ranch, and perhaps of the Earth.

As Diablo departed, Alfwin and Cornelius slowly approached the body of their fallen comrade. Even more blood spilled from his mouth, which was a sign of the worst that has happened. 

"Alfwin, I'm afraid Horatio is a goner." Cornelius proclaimed as he picked up the body of his fallen childhood friend. Alfwin began to uncontrollably sob, hiding his tears with his hands. 

"Horatio, I'm so sorry I let you do this to yourself. I tried my best to stop you, but you refused. Now I really know how your father truly feels about you, my friend. Come, Alfwin. We must tell Horatio's father at the strike of dawn." 

* * *

In the morning, Cornelius carried his fallen comrade to what was once his home. Alfwin knocked on the door as loud as he could so the Wizard could hear it. 

Upon the door opening, the Wizard saw that Horatio was no longer a being who lived and breathed, but one whose soul has reached the skies above. He was truly taken aback that out of nowhere, his only son has perished. 

"How could I do this...?" the Wizard said, "How could I let this happen?"

"I tried to stop him, sir." Cornelius said, "But Horatio couldn't budge a bit. Please, it was not all my fault." 

"I understand, Cornelius. Come, Horatio must remain in his bedroom." 

The three went up to Horatio's bedroom and laid him there. They all mourned at the one who fell from a monster at such a young, tender age. There was so much potential Horatio could have had, be it to become what he really wanted or to listen to his father and become a wizard like he was supposed to. 

In the Almanac, the countries sensed that Horatio was no longer in this world and has perished. England was the only one to shed tears for the young lad, as Prussia and Austria had no tears to shed but lay their condolences to a father who raised the boy who was about to become a man. 

All because of this incident with Horatio, the Almanac was abandoned and remained closed, so the Wizard wouldn't be reminded about the sudden death of his son.

For the rest of the Wizard's days, he wore a black cloak to show that there is many signs of regret within him, and to mourn for the rest of his days. Just only a few days after Horatio's death, the Wizard passes away from his old age. These two were the last descendants of Arne the Wise, and perhaps the last known wizards of the land. The two are buried next to each other, along with the Wizard's wife who passed right after the birth of Horatio. You might as well see them in the heavens, all together, happy, and living how they lived on Earth. Perhaps up there, Horatio could have lived his dream of being a bard, performing for his fellow souls.

As for the Almanac itself, it actually grew as time flew by. The birth of new countries, major battles in warfare, and great movements stirred the pages of the Almanac. It was all thanks to the spell the Wizard once said to the first three countries he met: "Vita Allitera." However, it is unknown where the Almanac's whereabouts were. 

That is, until someone discovers it much, much later. 


End file.
